Process and apparatus for the visbreaking of heavy hydrocarbon feed

摘要

Viscoreduction process for a hydrocarbon-rich load in the liquid state, in which this load is brought to a temperature which provokes cracking at least part of the hydrocarbons present, is then introduced into the lower part of a maturer (3) in which it moves from bottom to top and is removed from the top to a fractionating unit. An inert gas is injected into the maturer in the hydrocarbon load, at least at the base of the unit near its side walls. The gas is injected towards the top along the side walls of the maturer and circulates from bottom to top along the walls, in the same direction as the hydrocarbon load. Also claimed is device for carrying out the above process. Preferably the gas is injected into the maturer at several different levels next to the side walls, by injectors arranged in a coronet. The gas is injected into the hydrocarbon load after it is heated, upstream of the maturer in the direction of flow of the load. For a flow of hydrocarbons of between 75 and 200 t/h, the gas flow is between 0.2 and 3 t/h, preferably between 0.5 and 2 t/h.